Child welfare call leads to fatal shooting by Burbank police

Police officers, called to a motel parking lot in Burbank about an unsupervised child, shot and killed a man before dawn on Monday, authorities said.

Officers responded around 5 a.m. to a report of an elementary school-age boy wandering in the parking lot of the Quality Inn at 2255 N. Buena Vista St. near the Hollywood Burbank Airport, Burbank Police Sgt. Emil Brimway said.

In the parking lot, officers found the boy, as well as a man who was seated inside a Honda Accord, Brimway said.

At some point during their interaction, at least one officer shot the man, police said. He was transported to a local trauma center, where he died from his injuries.

It was not immediately clear what prompted the shooting, but authorities said they found a loaded semiautomatic handgun at the scene.

Authorities are investigating a possible relationship between the boy and man, Brimway said. Any actions by the man who was killed, or whether he was shot while inside the car, were unclear.

Neither the child, who is currently in protective custody, nor the officers were injured in the shooting, said Brimway, who declined to identify the man.